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A Conversation With Governor Houston. 279

A OONVERSA'TION WITH GOVERNOR HOUSTON.JOHN H. REAGAN.In the latter part of February, 1861, I left my seat in the Congress'of the United :States, because I felt that I could no longer retain itwith self-respect. I had up to that time 'opposed the idea o'f a disso-lution of the Union, but the Republican majority had rejected manypropositions for a compromise, by which it was hoped the Unionmight be preserved, and received all such suggestions for compromisewith expression ,of derision, and gave the 'Southern members tounderstand that 'they were in the majority and would settle all mat-ters in their -own way.When I reached New Orleans on my way home, I there learnedthat I had been elected a member of the constitutional conventionof Texas, though I had not been a candidate. Instead of going di-rectly to my home in Eastern Texas, I went directly to Austin,Texas, where the convention had, met, arriving there on the morningof the third day of its session.At the breakfast table at the hotel, on the morning of my arrival,I met quite 'a number of the delegates to the convention, and in-quired of them whether any -effort had been made to secure the co-,operation of the State government with the convention. GeneralHouston was then Governor, .and was an avowed Union man. Thedelegates to whom I mentioned the matter advised me that no. effort,in that direction had been made; that they feared an offensive recep-tion if they attempted to approach him on 'this subject.I felt the great importance and necessity of securing the co-oper-,ation of the State government with the convention, in a matter ofso great moment to the people of Texas and of the Southern States,as the consideration of the question of dissolving our relations withthe Federal government, and determined to see the Governor on thissubject. Soon after breakfast I went to his -office and found himthere. I stated to him that I had called on him for a conferenceabout a matter 'of great moment. He soon disposed of some routinebusiness, and invited me into an adjoining room. I inquired of